1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to the production of alga biomass and alga biopolymer.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Processes for the growth of alga are well known. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,195,271 discloses a process for the growth of the alga Porphyridium cruentum and synthesis of the alga constituent carrageenin. Other processes for the growth of alga are disclosed in "Algal Culture: From Laboratory to Pilot Plant," J. S. Burlew, Ed., Carnegie Inst. of Washington, Publication No. 600, Washington, D.C. (1964), and "Properties and Products of Algae", J. E. Zajic, Ed., Plenum Press, N.Y. (1970). A culture for the growth of the alga Porphyridium aerugineum, known as the MCYII medium, is disclosed by Ramus, J., in the Jnl. Phycol., 8 [1], 97 (1972) and by Gantt, E. et al., in the Jnl. Phycol., 4, 65 (1968). The influence of light quality on the production of algal biomass production is disclosed in "Spectral Light Requirements of Algae," Brown, T. E., Tech. Report No. 69-45-FL, U.S. Army Natick Labs., October, 1968.